Honor Thy Father and Mother, but Obey Xi
hina’s Communist Party is playing a long game against Christianity, using the young to target the old; both separating children from faith and telling them to turn against their parents for a few dollars...
International Religious Freedom Act of 1998
As China Frees Pastor Jin, Christianity Remains a Target
After spending 266 days in a Chinese prison for practicing his faith, Pastor Ezra Jin is now free. The July 3 release comes weeks after President Donald Trump raised Jin’s case with Chinese paramount...
Policy Briefs
Why Christian persecution is Trump’s new foreign policy roadmap
During his first term, President Donald Trump made fighting Christian persecution around the world a foreign policy priority. In his second term, it has become something more than that. The...
Op-eds
Religious Persecution Underpins Anti-American Regimes in Cuba and Nicaragua
The Trump administration should put pressure on Havana and Managua to bolster religious freedom.
Op-eds
Qatar Has More Than Earned U.S. Condemnation for Persecuting Religious Minorities at Home
It should not be surprising that a government that provides sanctuary to Hamas and avidly supports the Muslim Brotherhood has a record of infringing its own citizens’ religious liberty. Finally, it has...
Policy Briefs
CCP Raids Churches, Arrests Hundreds of Christians in ‘China’s Jerusalem’
Chinese authorities conducted a massive raid on Christian faith groups days before Christmas in Wenzhou — known as “China’s Jerusalem” — detaining hundreds of worshipers. Many were from Yayang...
Policy Briefs
A ‘Country of Particular Concern’: Iran Rearrests Two Christians for Practicing Their Faith
Iran’s Renewed Discrimination: The Islamic Republic once again incarcerated two Christians in Tehran’s notorious Evin Prison for practicing their faith, the religious freedom...
Flash Briefs
State Department Should Deliver an Honest Message about Turkey’s Religious Freedom Record
The US Department of State’s annual report on international religious freedom, released on May 12, documents the ongoing erosion of freedom of religion or belief in Turkey. The report echoes the concerns...
Op-eds
Washington Can Help Free Turkey’s Highest-Profile Prisoner of Conscience
Among advocates for Turkey’s minorities, Osman Kavala is a secular saint. As a philanthropist, he has been the benefactor of initiatives to document and restore heritage sites, support arts and...
Op-eds
Turkey the Only NATO Member Singled out in Annual Religious Freedom Report
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released its 2020 Annual Report on April 28 and recommended the US government include Turkey on the State Department’s “Special...
Op-eds
USCIRF Denounces Iran’s Religious Freedom Violations
Religious freedom conditions in Iran “remained egregiously poor” in 2019, according to an annual report released by the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) on Tuesday. The report...
Policy Briefs
The Prospect of U.S. Sanctions Exacerbates Turkey’s Political and Economic Risks
Turkey is experiencing one of the worst economic downturns in its history.
Memos
Iran Sentences Couple for ‘Orientation Toward the Land of Christianity’
The Islamic regime in Tehran has sentenced an Iranian couple to a prison term for ...
Op-eds
Iran regime ramps up crackdown on persecuted Christians after US sanctions
U.S. sanctions on Iran have inadvertently led to a crackdown on its persecuted Christian community as the ayatollahs move to consolidate their power in the face of growing unrest across the count...
Op-eds
Advancing freedom of religion globally
Twenty years ago, President Clinton, with bipartisan support, signed into law the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA). The intention: to enshrine religious freedom as a core component of A...
Op-eds
Faithless
“I believe that God has planted in every heart the desire to live in freedom.” So said President George W. Bush in 2004. Leave for another day the debate over whether such a belief is...
Op-eds
Iran Accountability Week
Introduction: Chairman Munson, members of the committee, thank you for inviting me to appear before this distinguished committee. I applaud the Canadian Parliament for t...
Legislative Testimonies
Saudi Textbooks Propagate Intolerance
Here we go again. According to a new government report, Saudi Arabia published yet another year’s worth of public school textbooks that promote hateful ideas. This represents only the...
Op-eds
New Report Documents Saudi Rights Abuses That Harm U.S. Interests
FDD Senior Fellow Urges Washington to Push for Reforms
Press Releases
The Gulf Cooperation Council: Deepening Rifts and Emerging Challenges
Chairman Ros-Lehtinen, Ranking Member Deutch, and distinguished members of the subcommittee, thank you on behalf of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies for the opportunity to discuss tensions in...